Putting a new face on old Friendly's

Monday

Jul 14, 2014 at 2:40 AMJul 14, 2014 at 6:22 PM

Benjamin Paulin The Patriot Ledger @BPaulin_Ledger

The outsides of the buildings all look almost identical, with red-brick facades, large white stone corners, gabled roofs, a red and white steeple and a walkup window to grab ice cream.The Brockton region is scattered with former Friendly’s restaurants, but nowadays the businesses housed in those familiar buildings are far from the home of the Fribble.

When the company filed for bankruptcy in 2011, they shuttered 30 Massachusetts restaurants including locations in Brockton, Bridgewater, Stoughton and Taunton. A location in Randolph closed in 2008 and one in Holbrook closed in 2006.

A Hindu temple, a Thai restaurant, a diner and a burger joint are among those who now operate out of former Friendly’s in the area.

Keshav Sharan is the president of the Braj Mandir Temple on South Franklin Street in Holbrook.

He took over the location in 2008, did a full indoor renovation and opened in 2010. As one of the only Hindu temples located south of Boston, he has a membership of more than 2,500 worshippers.

“Sometimes people walk in and say ‘I used to have lunch or dinner here,’” Sharan said. “We say it used to be Friendly’s, but now it’s a friendly place.”

The outside of the building has remained largely unchanged, but the inside is almost unrecognizable. The booths and kitchen in the dining area were gutted to make way for a beautiful shrine where the main entrance used to be. Guests are asked to take their shoes off before entering.

The renovated basement has a full commercial kitchen where they make more than 7,000 vegetarian meals a year for the many festivals they host.

“The only thing that’s actually left here is the takeout window,” Sharan said laughing. “It’s really nice. It’s a brick building. There’s a lot of parking. So for us, it’s just perfect.”

In Brockton, Charles Saab opened Charlie’s Family Restaurant on Belmont Street next to Brockton High School in November.

He said sometimes people still come in looking for Supermelts but stay to try the food he makes from scratch.

“To be honest with you, people still come in and think it’s Friendly’s,” Saab said. “They say, ‘We thought it was still a Friendly’s’ and then they come in and they try the food and they like it.”

He said some customers have a bad view of the place because of their opinions on Friendly’s but Saab is working hard to win regulars over one customer at a time.

“The style, it looks like an old building. It’s traditional. Everybody knew it belonged to Friendly’s, but Friendly’s didn’t keep up the work to keep those places around. It’s tough to run a business. If people try us, they will like us.”

The location on Broad Street in Bridgewater is now home to S & I Asian Food, a Thai restaurant that opened in June.

In Taunton, the Red Rooster Restaurant at 247 Broadway is home to food like the Red Rooster burger, falafel, meat pies, shish kabob and whole belly clams.

The Sunnyside Cafe on North Main Street in Randolph is a hopping breakfast joint on Route 28.

While Friendly’s may be a rare site in the Brockton region, if you’re still craving a patty melt or a Fribble, locations in Raynham, Middleboro, Hanover and Pembroke are still open.